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On Friday, our office was abuzz, watching the video of comedian Katt Williams go after V103’s DJ Wanda Smith (Sellers)

It simultaneously hilarious and cringeworthy as Williams insulted Smith‘s hair, weight, blood pressure and fashion sense. But in his defense, Smith started it by insulting his hair. I echoed Katt’s sentiment when he said “oops” because it was clear from the onset that Smith was in over her head.

For as many times as we’ve questioned Williams’ decision-making abilities and overall sanity, he’s still a professional comedian. And he proved last week, that he’s more than capable of jones-ing, roasting, and playing the dozens with the best of them.

While the exchange was uncomfortable, I thought it would end there. Williams had been declared winner of that round and presumably Wanda had learned a lesson. But the morning, I saw news that Wanda’s husband LaMorris Sellers and sons didn’t take too kindly to their wife and mother being insulted by a man on a national platform. Understandable. It’s their actions in response to these feelings that make things a little dicey.

According to a statement Williams provided to the Gwinnett County Police Department, Smith’s husband and sons approached him at the Atlanta Comedy Theatre where he was performing. Unlike Wanda, they weren’t there to exchange words. Instead, Williams said Sellers brandished a gun, threatening him.

Williams told officers Sellers pulled a gun on him and pointed it in his face.

As far as Sellers’ side of the story, he said that Williams indicated that he wanted to fight. And according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, his gun merely fell out. He told authorities that he chased Williams into a nearby supermarket but he didn’t point the gun at him.

On air, Smith said, Williams saw her on the sidewalk outside the venue, approached her and told her, “I told you f**kin’ with me will make you go viral!” That’s apparently when things escalated.

As for Smith, today she issued this statement, “I am not playing victim. I am not a jokester like that. I don’t know how to do that. He did it. He won. It threw me off.”

And scene.

I don’t know if you caught the clip last week. But for reference here it is. The most intense part of the roasting session begins at 17:00 mark.

Play

If you’ll notice, Wanda was the one who initiated the back and forth, talking about Katt needing to get his hair fixed. I know Smith lists herself as a comedian as well. And as such, she should have studied Williams’ material and career enough to know that he would would not be an equal opponent. She would have never been ready for him. Like he said, she must not have seen his appearances on “Wild ’N Out.” Katt Williams is literally a professional roaster.

Honestly, the situation could have ended at the radio station. Wanda could have took her L as Black roasting culture dictates. Instead, she involved her family in the drama and the police had to be called. The whole thing reminded me of the ways in which men immediately jump to violence to uphold their honor.

I’m very much anti-gun but I’m not one of those people who’ll say I don’t condone violence. Because if a man hit me in the face, I’d want my man to be throwing punches as well. But if I lost a roasting battle that I ignited, we can leave the guns at home. In fact, there’s no need for a conversation. It’s just over. I lost. End of story.

Black men have to find ways other than physical violence to demand respect. If Wanda’s husband really felt like she had been violated, a conversation with Williams would have sufficed, not that he would have apologized.

Now, her husband is out in the streets exhibiting the same criminal behavior she was trying to insult Williams with. Thankfully, Williams has decided to show Wanda and her family a bit of grace by not pressing charges.

Veronica Wells is the culture editor at MadameNoire.com. She is also the author of “Bettah Days” and the creator of the website NoSugarNoCreamMag. You can follow her on Facebook and on Instagram and Twitter @VDubShrug.
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